Nevada County CA Archives History - Books .....Historical Sketch Of Grass Valley 1867
************************************************
Copyright.  All rights reserved.
http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/copyright.htm
http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/ca/cafiles.htm
************************************************

File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Joy Fisher sdgenweb@gmail.com December 19, 2005, 12:16 am

Book Title: Bean’s History And Directory Of Nevada County, California

HISTORICAL SKETCH OF GRASS VALLEY.
BY WILLIAM S. BYRNE.

  The history of Grass Valley is not unlike that of the very few prosperous
mining towns of our Golden State. Early in the days of California's American
history, when the gilded story of Marshall's discovery of gold at Coloma
startled the New as well as the Old World, a portion of the tide of immigration
from the East, which had set in toward these shores, carried to this picturesque
portion of the Sierra Nevada, a liberal share of adventurous gold-seekers. A
verdant valley, coursed by a beautiful stream then unruffled by the labor of the
prospector, presented a truly inviting resting place to the spirit-weary
traveler over the plains. Here the stock of the immigrant, wearied from a dull
trip of nearly two thousand miles, rested as it had not rested since the passage
of the Missouri river; and man, ever keen to observe Nature's advantages, saw
here, with prescient eye, a local habitation worthy of him and his.

  Shortly after the discovery of gold in El Dorado county, in 1848—as soon
thereafter as American enterprise could reach this part of the world—the search
for gold in California became general. The only capital required in placer
mining in those days, which, by the way, was the only gold mining then known,
was a pair of willing hands; Gulches, canons, creeks and rivers, and hillsides
were prospected by the American pioneer; and it is not at all strange that this
auriferous region should have been among the first to substantially reward the
brave gold hunter. Many there are ready to declare that Grass Valley was settled
early in 1849, but none can definitely give the name of, or any particulars
concerning, the early "Forty-niner." We have it on undisputed authority that
some immigrants who crossed the plains in 1849 located, in the fall of that
year, on Badger Hill, about one-half mile east of our present town site. The
company consisted of a Dr. Saunders, a Captain Brandon and his two sons,
Alexander and Greenbury. The parties erected a cabin on the Mil, in which they
remained for some time. During the winter, one of the Brandons died of scurvy,
and was buried on the hill where now stands the Grass Valley cemetery. John
Little, (still a resident of Grass Valley,} John Barry and the Fowler brothers,
also lived in the fall of 1849 on Badger Hill, near the Brandon cabin. Dr.
Saunders left Grass Valley, for Missouri, early in 1850; the elder Brandon left
this place in the winter of the same year, and his other son subsequently died
in the upper portion of this county, on Poorman's creek.

  In the fall of 1849, as well as in the spring of 1850, placer mining was
carried on with good results at Ohio Flat, Rhode Island, Boston and Woodpecker
Ravines, and at other points in this neighborhood.

  Boston Ravine was named by a Boston company, who mined very successfully in
this portion of town in 1849, leaving in December, 1850.

  Jules Rosiere opened a sort of trading post in Boston Ravine in December,
1849, selling to B. L. Lamarque in May, 1850; this really being the first store
opened in this place. The second store was established by the Fowler Brothers in
June, 1850, and was purchased by Thomas Fielding and William Pattingall in the
fall of the same year.

  Quartz, which has made Grass Valley world-renowned, was not discovered until
June, 1850, seven or eight months after the opening of placer mines here. The
earliest discovery of quartz bearing gold was made, as we have already stated,
in June, 1850, on Gold Trill, but, owing to a general ignorance of quartz veins,
the discovery created little or no excitement among the miners, who were
satisfied with their yields from the placer mines. In October, 1850, a man named
McKnight, who had come from Newtown to Boston Ravine, camped on the summit of
Gold Hill, overlooking Boston Ravine, and there discovered the Gold Hill ledge,
which has proved one of the richest mineral veins ever opened. He made the
discovery at a point known as the "Elbow," where the lode cropped out quite
prominently, showing an average width on the surface of two feet. This discovery
set the camp in the wildest excitement, and soon hundreds flocked to Gold Hill.
Claims, originally thirty by forty feet, were staked off immediately, and
prospecting at once commenced. Among those who successfully worked Gold Hill in
its incipient days were Thomas Cracklin, William Hugunin, and others, who are
still residents of Grass Valley. The first Gold Hill mill was erected in 1851.
In 1852, the majority of the Gold Hill. Company's stock was purchased by the
Agua Frio Company, (an English Company,) for $50,000.

  Following the Gold Hill quartz excitement came the discovery of quartz on
Massachusetts Hill, in the same neighborhood, the vein being quite rich but not
so wide on the croppings as the Gold Hill ledge.

  The first family located in Grass Valley was a Mr. Scott and wife, who came
here in the spring of 1850. The first families in Boston Ravine were John R.
Rush and Peter Mason.

  As forming a thrilling feature in the early days of this section's history, we
give the following account of an adventure with Indians, written by Mr. Sargent:

  Early in November, 1849, Samuel and George Holt, and James Walsh, came with
wagons, tools, machinery, etc., to a place about four miles below Grass Valley,
for the purpose of erecting two saw mills—the one by the Messrs. Holt, a water
mill; and Judge Walsh's, a steam mill. Zenas Wheeler was of the party. The Holts
finished their mill in March, 1850, and were sawing lumber on the 8d of May.
While working in the mill they were attacked by Indians, of whom there were a
great number in the vicinity. The elder Holt (Samuel) was pierced and at once
killed by their arrows. George Holt escaped with life, fighting eight or ten
Indians up the hill between the two mills, with only a small pocket knife in his
hand, and fell into the arms of Judge Walsh, covered with blood and wounded in
thirteen places with arrows. Only three of the company were at home at the time
of the attack, Mr. Wheeler having gone below for the engine, and two others to
the Yuba. The property was plundered and burnt the night after the attack on the
Holts, and the camp of Judge Walsh was threatened. A few friendly Indians gave
their assistance during the night, and Captain Day (subsequently County Surveyor
of Nevada County) and another man came in on noticing the fires and disorder.
Old "Chief Wemeh brought the dead body of Holt to the camp. The nest morning
Captain Day-and his friend started for camp "Far West," on Johnson's Ranch, at
Bear River; and the morning after, twenty-four United States soldiers arrived,
supplied by Major Day, commanding at that station. One hundred miners from Deer
Creek also poured in, and in a couple of days they killed and run off all the
Indians. Mr. G. Holt was removed to Stocking's store, on Deer Creek, and
recovered in ten days.

  In our early times, Judge Lynch presided, and if his rulings, were not always
dignified or legally correct, his promptness was certainly never brought into
question. The miner knew no such, thing as the "law's delay." The punishment was
generally in ratio to the crime committed. In November, 1850, a man named
Napoleon Collins, who had stolen a mule, was taken up, tried by His Honor Judge
Lynch, was found guilty of the crime, and was sentenced to receive thirty-six
lashes, which he did, and he soon afterward left.

  Following the discovery of quartz in Grass Valley, a demand came for quartz
mills. The first erected, an experimental affair, was in 1850, by Dr.
Wittenbach, for J. Wright. It stood in the rear of the present Lady Franklin
mill. The second, known as the Abby mill, was built by the Boston company in the
spring of 1851, of which Abbey was superintendent, and the late Louis R. Sowers
was machinist. It occupied the site on which the Sebastopol mill now stands. The
third mill, in Boston Ravine, was built by Wright & Hansard, the same spring,
the late James Harper being machinist.

  The first saw mill in Grass Valley was constructed by Judge Walsh, in July,
1850, of which G. P. Clark was engineer, and Zenas Wheeler, wheelwright. It was
built in Mill street, on the ground now occupied by the City Brewery.

  The first quartz mining, like the same branch of business in later days,
resulted not altogether in Midas-like realities. Ledges were touched, aye,
roughly handled, but they turned not into gold. Fortunes came speedily to the
favored few, but tardily, and in too many instances not at all, to the unlucky
many. Prices of crushing were disastrously high; the processes for saving gold
were imperfect, and men were financially wrecked in working quartz which would
now prove a fortune to its owners.

  In the fall of 1850 the first hotel was erected by Thomas Beatty, on the south
side of Main street, the present location of the Senate Saloon, and was named
the Beatty House.

  The town was early supplied with ditches, the first, the Centerville, being
dug in the fall of 1850, by Ormsby and others, who obtained their water supply
from Wolf Creek. The next, known as Murphy, O'Connor & Co's Ditch, was built in
the fall of 1851, the principal projectors of this work being Judge Isaac
Murphy, late Governor of Arkansas, and Judge M. P. O'Connor, still of Grass
Valley. Day, Fouse & Co. brought in a ditch from Wolf Creek the same year; and
the Empire Ditch, built by L. L. Whiting, J. P. Stone and others, and the Union
Ditch, the latter being supplied from Little Deer Creek, were constructed in 1852.

  Boston Ravine was the pioneer settlement of the valley, having a vigorous
existence before even the cloth shanty of the danger-braving gold-seeker had
been pitched in Grass Valley.

  In the early part of 1851 Grass Valley contained but two or three cabins, but
its growth during this and the subsequent year was almost marvelous.

  In 1851 the first school was opened by Miss Rosanna Farrington, (now Mrs. J.
P. Stone, of this place,) in a little building which stood on the lot now owned
and occupied by S. D. Bosworth, on Mill street.

  A Postoffice was established in this place in the year 1851, under the
administration of Millard Fillmore, and Dr. C. D. Cleveland was appointed
Postmaster.

  The first homicide, but, unfortunately, not the last, was committed in Grass
Valley in January, 1851. A desperado known as Jack Allen, who came to California
with Colonel Stevenson's regiment, intruded at a ball given at the Grass Valley
House, he became boisterous and abusive, made several threats, and when about to
carry out his wicked designs, he was shot down. His slayer was never positively
known. A Dr. Vaughan, who went up and examined the head of Allen after the
homicide, remarked: "Why, what a head! He ought to have been killed years ago."
This phrenological opinion, gratuitously given by Vaughan, came very near
costing him his own head.

  The reader's patience is taken into consideration in not detailing the common,
or even all the uncommon events, connected with the history of our town. Grass
Valley has had her mining excitements, her murders, homicides, her eras of
profligacy, her days of fortune-making and fortune-losing; in fine, all of that
strange commingling of pleasure and pain only realized in California.

  A historical sketch of Grass Valley without a passing word at least for Lola
Montez, would be a sort of Hamlet with the demented Dane left out. In 1854 and
'55 the erratic Lola lived in this place, occupying the residence now owned by
Mr. Bosworth, which building the "Limerick Countess" had erected for herself.
Her eccentricities here—that being, perhaps, inconsistently mild—would add none
to the encomiums lavished upon her memory by mawkish scribblers. Her most
notorious adventure here was her street attack on Henry Shipley—who at that time
was editing the Grass Valley Telegraph. Shipley, long connected with the press
of California and Oregon, and who fills a suicide's grave, had published
something severe on one of Lola's ballet friends. The irate actress provided
herself with a whip, found Shipley, made a few belligerent passes at him, but
was taken away before doing any serious damage to her surprised victim.

  On June 27th, 1857, a horrible tragedy occurred at Osborn Hill, near this
place, in which four men were killed, among others, James McMurtry, an estimable
gentleman, whose tragic death threw a mantle of mourning over all who knew him.
The battle—for it assumed the proportions more of a pitched battle than an
ordinary fight—had its origin over the ownership of what was known as the
McMurtry and Larrimer ground. The dispute had been virtually settled. The
so-called Griffin party, headed by Alexander Griffin, who plied his congeners
with liquor until they were drunk to the quarrelsome degree, were on the
"disputed territory," all armed to the teeth. When McMurtry and his friends, who
had supposed that their affair had been or was about to be settled civilly,
appeared on the ground, the Griffin party in force opened the attack, with guns
and pistols. A large number were engaged in the fight, which is described by
participants as a terrible one. McMurtry and a man named Collins were killed
almost instantaneously. One Garvey, and a man known as "Coyote Jack," received
wounds from which they subsequently died. Richard Kemble and Patrick Casey
received frightful injuries, but both recovered. Kemble was insane for some time
after the fight, and was sent to the Asylum at Stockton. Five of the Griffin
crowd, including Alexander Griffin, John McCabe, Daniel McGee, Casey and Patrick
Harrington, were sent to the Penitentiary, where they served out a portion of
their time and were pardoned.

  The first brick building in town was erected by Adams & Co., in the fall of
1854, and was used for a banking house and express office. The first brick
store, which has successfully contended against numerous fires, was built the
same year by Silvester & Salaman.

  The saddest mining accident hereabout (and such things have been painfully
frequent,) occurred on January 28th, 1860, in the mine of the Boston Ravine
Company, on New York Hill. Four men, Frank Lampshire, Alex. Jeffery, Cornelius
McGraw, and a man named Peters, who were working in a breast of the mine, were
drowned. An immense volume of water, which had been tapped from the old works,
burst through on the unfortunate men, filling up the breast in which they were
working, and also filling the shaft of the mine to a hight of forty feet. The
accident occurred on Saturday, and so great was the amount of water in the mine,
that Captain Powning, the superintendent of the works, was unable to recover the
bodies until the following Monday.

  Of conflagrations Grass Valley has certainly had its quota. The most
disastrous fire occurred on September 13th, 1855, when over three hundred
buildings, covering an area of thirty acres, were consumed. This wholesale
destruction of property was accomplished in the brief space of one hour and
fifteen minutes. Loss estimated at over $350,000. The fire originated in the
United States Hotel, kept by Madame Bonhore, and owned by Oakly & Hall, the
latter now being Police Judge of Sacramento. The town was quickly rebuilt. A
very destructive fire, of which we have failed to obtain particulars, occurred
in 1860. On June 11th, 1862, a fire, which, originated in a carpenter shop on
upper Main street, destroyed the National Office, Engine House, Hodge's Hotel,
Aurora House, and other buildings. Loss, $25,000. On August 15th, of the same
year, property to the amount of $40,000 was consumed. Fire originated in the old
Center Market, on Main street.

  While quartz has been the chief mining interest of Grass Valley, it is well to
remember that our placer, cement, gravel and creek diggings have paid as well,
taking the labor into consideration, as similar mines in other portions of
California. The Slide, Alta Hill, Woodpecker Ravine, Kate Hayes Hill, Pike Flat,
and other mining localities in and about this place, have turned out fabulous
amounts of free gold. Several of these old mines, as, for instance, the Alta No.
1, owned by John Jeffree, John Roberts and Herman Kruse, are now yielding well.

  The township of Grass Valley embraces Grass Valley proper, Boston Ravine,
Allison Ranch, Massachusetts Hill, New York Hill, Forest Springs, Union Hill,
Ophir Hill, Hueston Hill, Eureka Hill, Buena Vista, Sebastopol Hill, Osborne and
countless other hills, as well as a host of prefixed ravines, at all of which,
localities quartz mining is conducted, and, inmost instances, with highly
satisfactory results. In the township there are at least thirty dividend-paying
quartz mines, and twenty-eight quartz mills, running in the aggregate over three
hundred stamps; besides, we have three establishments in which, sulphurets are
reduced. The number of men engaged in and about the quartz mills and extensive
mines of this township, together with those working on a smaller scale, will
approximate three thousand; a larger number than any other township in
California can show.

  The town of Grass Valley (this we give for those unacquainted with our
geographical-position,) is located four miles southwest of the county seat of
Nevada, thirty-five miles from Marysville, sixty-five miles from Sacramento, and
is eleven miles from Colfax—the nearest station on the Central Pacific Railroad.
During the past two years Grass Valley has grown wonderfully, proving one of the
very few exceptions, in this respect, to California's interior towns. Our chief
interest is quartz, and with the development of this very important branch of
mining, business of all kinds has rapidly increased, the town has enlarged its
dimensions, and it is safe to estimate that during the past eighteen months at
least live hundred houses have been erected in Grass Valley and the vicinity.

  Following is a list of the number of business establishments, organizations,
professions, etc., in Grass Valley: Drygoods stores, five; clothing, five;
grocery stores, ten; hotels, four; bakeries, five; breweries, three; markets,
eight; livery stables, three; lumber yards, five; banks, two; boot and shoe
stores, three: boot makers, ten; tailor shops, five; hardware and tin stores,
five; furniture establishments, three; jewelry stores, three; flour and feed
stores, three; blacksmith shops, six; carpenter shops, eight; wagon shops, five;
drug stores, four; cigar and tobacco stores, three; foundries, two; variety
stores, four; restaurants, five; lapidaries, two; paint shops, five; stationers,
two; shaving saloons, seven; auction stores, two; Cheap John, one; gunmaker,
one; soda factory, one; laundries, two; saloons, about fifty; photographers,
two; churches, seven; benevolent associations, seven; military companies, two;
daily papers, two; fire companies, three; schools, eight— three public and five
private; brass band, one; physicians, eleven; lawyers, ten; dentists, four;
surveyor, one.

  Grass Valley, in its history of sixteen years, has never seen a more
prosperous time than the present. Many of its old mines are yielding better than
ever before; new mines, full of promise, and opened within the past year, are
already paying handsome dividends, while a large number of lodes, located during
the year 1866, will be extensively and energetically worked during the present
season. Quartz mining, conducted judiciously, is no longer a dangerous
experiment, but a golden reality. Quartz has made Grass Valley the wealthiest of
California's inland towns, and this interest alone, leaving out our agricultural
wealth, will enable us, for this generation at least, to rank high among the
favored places on this coast.


Additional Comments:
Extracted from:

Bean’s History and Directory of Nevada County, California

CONTAINING A COMPLETE HISTORY OF THE COUNTY, WITH
SKETCHES OF THE VARIOUS TOWNS AND MINING
CAMPS, THE NAMES AND OCCUPATION OF
RESIDENTS; ALSO, FULL STATISTICS
OF MINING AND ALL OTHER
INDUSTRIAL RESOURCES.

COMPILED BY EDWIN F. BEAN.

PRINTED AT THE DAILY GAZETTE BOOK AND JOB OFFICE,
1867.


File at: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/ca/nevada/history/1867/beanshis/historic252ms.txt

This file has been created by a form at http://www.poppet.org/cafiles/

File size: 20.7 Kb